Possible "Peeping Tom" arrested on Mud Island

MEMPHIS, TN (WMC-TV) - Barbara Standing came out of her house when she heard a police helicopter hovering over Mud Island late Thursday night.

"Then, we saw policemen looking in the bushes with a flashlight," Standing said. "We knew something was up."

Officers finally found convicted sex offender Artie Perkins. According to court records, he attempted to get away after a female homeowner spotted a man outside her window. It's a neighborhood recently terrorized by a "Peeping Tom."

Police say Artie Perkins uses a dozen or more aliases. He was charged three years ago in Germantown as "Carl Allen." At the time, police there told Action News 5 someone at an apartment complex caught him fondling himself outside a window. They said that he once tried to break into the bedroom of an 11 year-old girl.

A quick search of the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry reveals that Perkins is classified as a "violent" offender with a conviction out of Florida.

"I think that even upset people even further because they thought it might be a random occurrence," said Mud Island resident David Bradford. "But, obviously, this person has done this type of thing before."

Many on Mud Island hope another arrest prevents Perkins from committing another crime, anytime soon.

At this point, Artie Perkins is only charged with violating rules of the Sex Offender Registry. He has not yet been officially connected to the "Peeping Tom" cases. He is being held on a $100,000 bond.